Connell secures £100k investment pot in Dragons' Den-style contest

A Ballymena student has secured a £100k investment for his start-up company in a Dragons' Den-style challenge.
Connell McLaughlin.Connell McLaughlin.
Connell McLaughlin.

Connell McLaughlin came up trumps with his pothole-spotting device at the University of Southampton.

The 19-year-old outshone dozens of other entries to be pitching as one of the final six student startups. And the panel was impressed by his vehicle sensor that records where and when it hits obstructions. The information is then transferred to a database and highlighted on a map.

Connell’s business started as a school engineering project when he was 16 at Ballymena Academy.

“I really enjoy solving problems and being an entrepreneur allows me to do this as a job,” he explains. “Getting to decide exactly what I work on and how I do it is a very big draw for me.”

Now a first year student in Aeronautics and Astronautics with Spacecraft Engineering, he added: “The potential investment would have a massive impact on my business and the speed at which I’m able to execute growth over the next few months.”